Stu Ward posted his image of Orion earlier.
And, being starved for data, thought I'd play around a little with the processing.
This is what I did, step by step, using Photoshop CS3.
Similar can be done using other programs.
1. First I wanted to tame the bright core of the nebula, The Trapezium.
I selected it using "Select Colour Range". Adjusting the slider to suit.
2. Then I "Feathered" the selection, so I don't get any harsh lines where the adjustments start and finish. It sort of smudges the edges.
3. Going into "Image", "Adjustments" and choose "Shadows/Highlights" and use this tool to adjust the brightness and contrast of the selected area.
4. Next I worked on the rest of the image, without touching what we have already done by inverting our selection. We need to go to "Select" and choose "Inverse".
5. This time go to "Filters" and choose "Sharpen" and select "Unsharp Mask". Adjust sliders as shown.
6. Go to "Select" and "Deselect". Go to "Image", "Adjustments" and choose "Curves". Select the blue channel and slightly desaturate.
